SOTA c38s02
Text The glossy-black stallion stood quietly at the outer edge of Canterlot among many other ponies, all of them gazing up at the floating island. Evening had settled, and soldiers were positioned all throughout the city to keep an eye on things. By now, rumors and word had spread that they were staging an attack on the floating island again... that was why the island was left naked for all to see, floating ominously in the sky, surrounded by the glowing sphere of energy through which only glimpses of the shapes beyond could be caught now and then. The moon burned in the sky, and the stars gleamed like lanterns, casting ivory radiance over the world. It added a strange beauty to the world, even to this terrible thing floating in the sky above, and made the armor protecting many of the ponies sparkle quietly, turning them into brighter beacons that the lights that glowed out of the windows of the homes and businesses and other buildings. Antares Mīrus rolled his shoulders slowly against his armor, a simple small, round shield glinting on his back and satchels laden down with explosives at his sides. They would be easy enough to set off at least: a concentrated blast of fire or magic would provide enough of a spark to set them off, and they had an adhesive strip on one side to let them stick in place. Two were packed in each saddlebag, and almost every Pegasus coming with him would be carrying more, so they had a generous amount of explosives. Antares was glad for it: once they took out enough generators to lower the shield, they could use the rest of the explosives to bring down any major defenses they could see, and maybe blow their way into the fortress or facility or whatever it was they had only caught glimpses of so far beneath the shield. But the stallion had already promised not to be stupid: he would wait for Sleipnir and Morning Glory at the very least before making any movement deeper into the enemy base. A hoof touched his shoulder gently, and the glossy black unicorn glanced over with a smile at Meadowlark. Their eyes met and studied each other for a few long moments, and then she said softly: “I'll be coming too, Mir, remember that. Try to wait for me, okay?” “I will. We all will.” Antares stopped, then looked over his shoulder at the team he had assembled to attack, studying them for a few moments with a faint smile: there were the expected faces, like Avalon and Aphrodisia and Pinkamena, but also Spitfire and Soarin' of the Wonderbolts, and Rainbow Dash, who was grinning widely despite the seriousness of the situation as she stomped her hooves eagerly up and down, dressed in a blue and yellow-lightning streaked uniform like the two ponies she clearly still looked up to. They might not be fighters, but Antares didn't need fighters right now as much as he needed ponies who were fast, agile, and could follow orders. The confident co-captains of the Wonderbolts had agreed to do that, and even if Antares was young, when they saw the deference and respect the others treated him with, they put their faith in him. And even more trust once Celestia herself had asked them to listen to him and assist him in any possible way. Rainbow Dash was clearly ready to do whatever it took to live up to the expectations set for her, even if she didn't like that Antares had nominated Avalon to be in lead, in spite of the fact she was wearing full armor and her own saddlebags. The other three Pegasi would fly in V-formation behind her, and the stallion would follow in their wake and do his damnedest to keep up. Lastly, Pinkamena and Aphrodisia would stay in a protective spiral: in smoke form they would be easily able to keep up to even the fastest Pegasus, although Aphrodisia still wasn't all that good at carrying objects with her while fast-traveling. Near the back of this open, wide lookout that gazed out over the beautiful mountains that surrounded Canterlot – although right now, all attention was naturally drawn up to the spherical shape hovering ominously above – Princess Celestia stood with her armored younger sibling, the Archmage, Shining Armor, Cadence, and Twilight Sparkle. There were a few other unicorns as well, but they were a little apart, outside the natural closeness of the rest of the group. Once Princess Celestia confirmed that everyone was in position, she would signal Antares, and he would signal back when he and his team were ready. They had already calculated the run: they would try and time it so that when Antares' team was halfway to the barrier, Princess Celestia and the ponies she had chosen to help her would blast the shield above, and cut them their tunnel, holding it hopefully for just long enough for them to get through. Antares looked up at the floating island again, breathing slowly before Meadowlark smiled a little. “Mir... you're going to be fine, okay? I mean... your plans don't always fail, right? And no matter what happens, you're always able to think your way through things. Everyone trusts you because you do a good job as a leader. And I care about you so damn much because you take care of people, even when it puts your own health at risk and you barely know them. You'll do the right thing.” The stallion nodded a little, and then Rainbow Dash called cheerfully: “Hey, you know kid, if you're so worried, I'll take lead. I'm a great leader.” “No you're not.” Spitfire said mildly as she adjusted her goggles on her forehead, and Rainbow Dash blushed deep red and looked almost pleadingly at the Wonderbolt, but the golden-coated Pegasus only grinned in return, shaking out her fiery orange mane before she turned a smile to Antares. “Look, kid, if Princess Celestia believes if you, then I'll believe in you.” Soarin' nodded in agreement, adding awkwardly: “Besides uh... I gotta say that I'd rather be flying with you in lead than... her.” He pointed moodily at Avalon, who huffed from beneath her horned helm as she buzzed easily back and forth despite the heavy equipment she was wearing. “You shut the hell up. You're not half as cute as my gay uncle Soarin'. You're lame and probably repressed and I bet no one really even likes you all that much. Straight loser Soarin'.” Soarin' groaned and rolled his eyes, but Spitfire laughed and shook her head, smiling amusedly between the two before she said easily: “I like this kid. I really, really do. She's got a mean mouth on her but look at her muscle power.” Avalon preened at this, grinning widely as she posed, and Antares laughed despite himself. But just as he felt himself beginning to relax a little despite the intensity of everything that was going on around them, he heard Princess Celestia call to him, and he turned to gaze towards her, seeing her nod clearly across the sea of faces. Sleipnir and Morning Glory both looked back from where they sat amongst the soldiers, and Pinkamena grunted moodily from where she was a little apart from the group, glancing up from sharpening her enormous battle axe. “We going then, kid?” “Yeah. Everyone, get ready.” Antares said quietly, nodding once as he breathed slowly, then turned and shared a quick kiss with Meadowlark before she stepped away and smiled supportively. The stallion gestured for the others to get in position, and Avalon growled and spun around, dropping forwards and spreading her wings wide as she moved into a ready pose, while the Wonderbolts and Rainbow Dash assembled in a line behind her, the three uniformed Pegasi pulling down their goggles. Aphrodisia giggled brightly and bounced in the lightweight breastplate she was wearing before Pinkamena called mildly over to her daughter, as the demon slipped her battle axe into place over her back: “Kid, remember to concentrate, okay? We don't want you leaving that pretty armor behind and all. You won't get to have as much fun if I gotta send you back to get it.” “Yes, Mommy!” Aphrodisia chirped as Antares strode into place, and the stallion took a few slow breaths before smiling when he heard the demon add encouragingly, in a quieter voice: “You're going to lead us fine, Nova.” Antares nodded after a moment, then he straightened and looked calmly up as Sleipnir called out cheerfully: “Good luck, my family, pave the way forwards with haste! Elsewise I may take it into my mind that I should simply deal with this floating island myself, and 'twould be such a waste of good sport to steal that victory out from under thee.” “Dream on, Slippers.” Pinkamena retorted, her eyes gleaming with entertainment and conviction as she cracked her neck loudly before looking up at the floating island in the distance. “You just better hope that once we break that shell open, there's more than a few little bugs crawling around inside. Otherwise I'm going to have to kill 'em all before you even get a chance to make a nuisance of yourself.” Sleipnir only huffed at this, and Aphrodisia giggled quietly before she promised: “Don't worry, Daddy, I'll make sure that Mommy saves something for you, okay?” Antares shook his head slowly, but he was smiling all the same before he looked over his shoulder and rose a hoof to Princess Celestia. She nodded clearly back again, and he felt the silent wish of good luck that came from her... from all of the ponies gathered, as a matter of fact, as the stallion faced forwards and felt the tingle of magic beginning to grow behind him, before he shouted: “Everyone, get ready! On my mark, we fly... slow ascent to the halfway point, then we rush to the point where the magic is converging, move in fast, and assume escort formation!” “We got it, Mir, let's get this show on the road already! Don't worry...” Avalon grinned widely as she looked forwards, eyes flashing as she pawed a hoof against the ground. “I'll go nice and slow so you can all keep up.” Rainbow Dash growled, clearly taking this as a challenge, while the Wonderbolts to either side of her both refused to take the bait. But Avalon was thrumming with excitement, only waiting for the command, while Antares was taking things much slower, breathing quietly and simply letting himself feel out the right moment, his body loosening up little-by-little as he almost tasted the emotions of all the ponies around him near and far... “Go!” Antares shouted, and his leathery wings spread and flapped once before he launched himself into the air in almost perfect, unplanned synchronization with the Pegasi ahead of him. Avalon grinned widely in the lead, her eyes burning with excitement as Aphrodisia and Pinkamena both burst into trails of smoke that followed quickly in the wake of the flying ponies. Back on the ground, Meadowlark couldn't stop herself from cheering Antares on, and she was joined by a roar from Sleipnir; others picked up, Royal Guard adding to the din, and the Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Applejack and Rarity of this layer all yelling encouragement almost desperately up to the ponies as they began their ascent. It added to the determination that the others felt, as Princess Celestia's horn began to glow brighter, and to either side of her, Little Luna and Twilight Sparkle rose their own horns as they lit up with their own intense auras. The Archmage and his students turned, forming a line with Princess Cadence and Shining Armor, all of them calling up their magic and feeling the roar in the air filling their hearts and minds with strength and belief. One after the other, beams of light blasted forwards, hammering into the spherical forcefield above and sending ripples over its face: but as the beams converged at the same location, the pulses of energy became broader waves, distorting the face of the shield. But that was nothing compared to what was happening where the beams were focused: there, a white bruise was rapidly forming, motes of energy peeling off this like flaking stone as electricity sparked wildly over its face- Avalon shot upwards in a burst of speed, and the Pegasi fought to keep up with her as Antares pushed himself as hard as he dared, gritting his teeth as he forced his eyes to focus despite the wind biting at them and the world blurring by... but then he only grinned, all the pain in the world suddenly worth it as Avalon managed to spring a little ahead and between where the beams of magic were all striking in a rough, several-meter-wide ring, the tiny Pegasus smashing herself into the white wound in the barrier and shattering it like nothing more than cheap glass with a roar. Rainbow Dash and the Wonderbolts were through next, followed by the demons, and last came Antares, the stallion looking back and forth in amazement at the tunnel of white energy around him. He shot upwards through it, not letting himself slow even as much as he wanted to, and he burst out the other side just before there was a geyser of electricity and energy behind him, cursing as it knocked him off-balance before the hole in the barrier sealed shut. Then two sets of strong limbs caught him, and the stallion blinked a few times before looking up with an awkward smile at the sight of Spitfire and Soarin', while Rainbow Dash was staring in disbelief at Avalon. The tiny Pegasus was only grinning widely though, breathing hard and seemingly unaware of the electricity sparking over her metal armor as she pumped a hoof in the air. “Now that's how it's done! Yeah, none of you got nothin' on me!” Antares began to laugh... and then his eyes roved past the excited, amazed Pegasi as the smoky demons both shot by, and his eyes locked on the floating island hovering ominously less than fifty feet away. The bottom was made of twisted metal and bent and gnarled girders and ugly claws and teeth of stone, and the stallion could see massive gears and pumping pistons and terrible machinery resting all along the stone wall that faced him, but it was covered with ugly black sludge and rust and looked like it had been long dormant, even if there was a distinct sense of terrible life coming from this awful, damned place... “Let's remember why we're here. We still have a lot to do.” Antares flapped his wings, hovering before he shook his head and gritted his teeth: he let himself fall victim to exhilaration for a moment and he knew better than that, he knew that could cost them the entire mission. And I'm not going through that again. “Let's move quickly, not waste any more time!” The Wonderbolts both nodded sharply and saluted, and Rainbow Dash and Avalon both nodded as one of the demons snapped past him and curled around him almost in reassurance, Antares smiling slightly and distinctly feeling Aphrodisia's presence before he flapped his wings and quickly shot upwards. He began to concentrate on the task at hoof as they flew along the wall... But as they lifted beyond the enormous wall of the fortress that sat upon the floating island, the stallion's attention was immediately stolen by what they gazed out over. The entire island was a fortress of rock and steel, with massive pieces of machinery – some active and thrumming with insidious life, others sitting rotting and dormant – standing up like grim and grisly totems here and there, and massive, unnatural cliffs of crystal and rock curled here and there through the geometric and yet warped facility like great and petrified tidal waves. For a moment, all the ponies could do was stare down over this grisly, awful place that pulsed with such unnatural and terrible life. Even the demons seemed to pause, swirling slowly around the ponies as they looked down over the fortress... before Antares cursed as a screaming cry ripped through the air, and he felt that all-too-familiar instinct of alarm rip through his mind: they had just been seen. “I guess that's what we're here for, right?” Rainbow Dash shouted, pointing quickly down below, and Antares looked sharply in the direction she had indicated: stationed on a corner roof of the alien, uneven fortress, there was some kind of enormous, tube-shaped device. It was slightly-angled, supported by a steel tripod and with immense, black cables that ran along the length of the device and fed down into the floor, and enormous gemstones encircled the center of the strange machine, all of them glowing with light. But the real tell that it was what they were after was the constant stream of energy and electricity blasting up from the top of the tube and into the forcefield that surrounded the floating island. Antares nodded sharply, then looked up with a curse as there was another scream, seeing steel shapes moving through the air towards them, thinking quickly. And then, trusting in his instincts and hoping it was the right choice, he shouted: “Dash, Spitfire, Soarin', you know what you're looking for, so go find another one of those things! Avalon, go with Apps! Pinkamena, let's hit this thing hard!” And without waiting to see if they were going to listen to him, Antares turned and flew towards the generator that was in sight: he risked one glance over his shoulder to watch the others disperse, Avalon roaring a battle cry he could hear even over the ominous rumbling of the alien fortress below, before the stallion looked back forwards and gritted his teeth as he realized that the silver shapes near the generator weren't pieces of otherworldly architecture after all, but guards. They looked up: or at least, they seemed to, since none of the creatures had heads. They were Dullahan, their collars looking in on black voids, their bodies protected by heavy silver plate mail that covered them from collar to hoof. Large kite shields emblazoned with the profile of a dragon's head floated at their sides, and swords were already being raised to ready positions in front of them. They were efficient, intelligent former servants of Valthrudnir and Clockwork World... and if he had to guess, they had probably allied themselves with Thesis more than willingly. Antares readied himself, his horn beginning to glow... and then, in a streak of darkness, Pinkamena shot past him and transformed from shapeless smog into grinning, gray-pink pony, her blue eyes blazing as she let herself freefall towards the nearest before quickly reaching over her shoulder and yanking her axe off her back in a powerful overhead slash. The axe almost tore the lead Dullahan in half before Pinkamena roared and leaned forwards, smashing her weapon outwards to send the shattered metal equine crashing and rolling past his compatriots, the demon grinning widely as her banded armor creaked loudly as her body flexed against it, her eyes glowing with supernatural aggression as she grinned sharkishly. “You get that generator. I'll play kick the can.” “Cut her up, colts. Let's make her cry.” The unnatural voice echoed out of the gaping neck of the Dullahan on the right, and it rose its shield in front of it defensively as it glowed with a pale, poisonous aura. The second Dullahan stepped quickly into position beside the one that had spoken, taking on a more aggressive stance. Antares shot past them, and neither creature so much as twitched in his direction... but that was because the third Dullahan, despite its horrendous wounds, was pushing itself back to its hooves even though it had been devastated by Pinkamena's axe, metal creaking and groaning as it locked quickly back into place. But without hesitation, Antares snapped his horn down with a snarl, firing a blast of white fire straight down into the monster's regenerating body. The blast of purification blew the monster backwards with a howl, and its metallic body simply burst apart into pieces, metal hailing in all directions as ashes and black smoke burst upwards out of the shattered remains. Near-indestructible or not, Dullahan were powered by dark magic: something Antares could easily neutralize or blast out of the living suits of armor. Even before the poisonous essence of the creature dissolved completely, Antares had already landed, flicking his horn to open one of the satchel bags and quickly yank out a brick of explosive with telekinesis. He caught it in one hoof, snagging the large tag sticking off one side of the gray block with his teeth and yanking down to tear a strip of waxy film free, and then he slammed the ugly explosive firmly into place even as he heard one of the Dullahan rasp: “Forget the demon, get the kid!” Both Dullahan began to turn around, and Pinkamena growled as she leapt forwards, sliding her hooves up to the neck of the axe before she stabbed the handle viciously downwards, sending the butt of her weapon down the throat of one of the surprised Dullahan. It gargled, rearing back as sword and shield stuttered in the air beside it, and then Pinkamena spun around and roared as she yanked her axe through the air on a wide arc, hefting the Dullahan into the air and flinging it towards the edge of the roof as it flailed wildly. Its sword and shield banged down one after the other, before the Dullahan itself hit the edge of the building and bounced helplessly off with a whispery howl. Pinkamena grinned widely, then spun around as she twisted her axe sideways, using the immense blade to block a hard strike of the remaining headless knight's sword before she shoved her weapon fiercely forwards. The flat of the axe banged against the blade as the Dullahan was forced to bring up its own shield, and the undead construct grunted in effort: its weapon was sandwiched uselessly between shield and flat of the huge battle axe, and Pinkamena was grinning widely, holding the pin firmly. Even when the Dullahan stepped forwards, slamming its shoulder into the shield to add weight and physical strength to its telekinesis, the demon didn't waver before she snapped: “Are you done yet or what?” Antares didn't answer as he finished attaching a second explosive to the generator, then he simply leapt up and flapped his wings hard, gritting his teeth as he gathered his energy and retreated quickly. The Dullahan seemed to look up in surprise, then over its shoulder with a weak curse, but it was too late: the moment it started to try and yank itself away from Pinkamena, Antares snapped his horn down and sent a blast of white fire into one of the bombs. The stallion expected an explosion: what he didn't anticipate was the size and power of the blast, yelling in surprise as he was thrown backwards through the air as he was struck by heat and force and sound. The sheer force nearly knocked him out, hitting the ground and bouncing painfully several times as he felt energy sizzling painfully over his horn, disrupting his thoughts with a curse before he stared in disbelief at the pillar of fire and black smoke and thunder that had replaced the beam of energy. It drilled into the barrier above, spreading dark blots through the shield that surrounded the floating island as black fire spread greedily over the roof, burning rock and metal alike as stone cracked and crumbled away around them. Antares cursed, scrambling to his hooves, his mind aching, but Pinkamena only threw her head back and laughed despite the burns that seared her body, energy sparking over the demon; the Dullahan, meanwhile, hadn't been nearly as lucky, reduced to a pile of smoldering metal in front of the grinning Devourer. Her eyes glowed as she snapped her axe into place on her back, looking eagerly up as the pillar of foul fire and lightning finally dissolved into embers. The damage had clearly been done, though: there was only a burning hole in the rooftop where the generator had once stood, and above, veins and dark bruises were spreading slowly through the barrier like an infection, energy peeling away like burnt flesh as Pinkamena's eyes glowed. “Now we're getting somewhere! Come on, I wanna get to the fun!” Antares rubbed at his head, then both he and Pinkamena looked quickly to the side as there was another tremendous rumble as a second explosion went up, followed shortly by a third. The others had clearly found more generators and managed to detonate them, and the stallion felt a tingle in his mind before he leapt upwards, flying quickly towards the only pillar of rising darkness he could see, spewing up from a lower rooftop a short distance away. Pinkamena grinned and burst apart into dark smoke, following quickly after him as the stallion's eyes focused forwards. Every instinct was yelling at him to get there as fast as possible, and he forced himself to focus only on what was happening ahead even as the atmosphere around them began to change, the barrier that surrounded the floating island rippling and rapidly darkening. Three Pegasi were shooting back and forth around the dark pillar of energy, pursued rapidly by enormous steel birds. Huge claws snatched at them as they screamed through blade-like beaks, each possessing one single, enormous eye and bodies made of glassy gemstone, filled with lightning that shocked back and forth in wild arcs inside the awful creatures. Thunderbirds: more monsters from Clockwork World. One of the Pegasi suddenly spun around after the Thunderbird made a wild grab at the winged pony, launching towards the creature and swinging both rear hooves up to kick savagely into its vulnerable chest. The crystalline cage shattered as the Pegasus used the kick to launch itself backwards as well, but still released a cry of agony as the Thunderbird exploded with a shriek in a burst of shrapnel, electricity, and anti-magic. The Pegasus zigzagged violently upwards, smoldering, suit torn, and Antares realized it was Spitfire as he drew in closer: the Captain of the Wonderbolts had her teeth grit and part of her uniform had been burnt away in the blast, but she was still flying gamely, and both Soarin' and Rainbow Dash were quick to fall in beside her and help steady her, even as the two remaining Thunderbirds twisted in towards the trio. Antares flicked his horn sharply, sending a blast of white fire into one of the creatures, and the Thunderbird was knocked off course with a shriek before it twisted in midair to turn its attention to the stallion. It shot forwards, and Antares readied himself with a wince: these nasty kamikazes were too resistant for his magic to work well against them, which left attacking them physically... but thanks to the fact they exploded when killed, it was going to hurt like hell unless he did it right. But the stallion was saved the trouble when a cloud of black smoke shot past him, wreathing upwards and twisting around the Thunderbird before solidifying into Pinkamena on its back, and the Thunderbird tilted back and forth in midair for a moment before the demon slashed her axe viciously down into one of its wings. The metallic bird screamed as the appendage was almost severed, and Pinkamena grinned as she kicked off the Thunderbird's back as it plummeted from the air to crash into the ground below, exploding in a shockwave of force and lightning that Antares felt even from where he was above. The last Thunderbird was still pursuing the Pegasi around the dissipating column, but all three suddenly broke formation, shooting in all directions. On some instinct, perhaps, the Thunderbird turned its eyes towards Soarin': he had the worst wounds, with most of his suit charred away and one foreleg a burnt, smoldering mess. But his wings were still strong, and he pushed hard, twisting his flight path upwards as the Thunderbird pursued greedily... and then Rainbow Dash and Spitfire both slammed into the backs of its metal wings, striking with so much force that the appendages were almost torn off and the Thunderbird went into a wild spin as it fell towards the ground. It hit the edge of the rooftop below and exploded, chunks of steel flying in all directions as the three Pegasi shot towards each other and punched their hooves together, and Antares surveyed their surroundings quickly as he flew towards them. Part of the rooftop here had caved in, and Pinkamena was loitering near the hole, calmly waiting for instructions despite the grin on her face. But the stallion could sense rising activity: whatever other forces were here were hurrying quickly up to meet them... Antares began to open his mouth, and then he winced as he was knocked off course as a black shape darted by, before the smoky form twisted sharply downwards and hit the ground beside Pinkamena, solidifying into Aphrodisia in a moment. The stallion looked down with her at relief, before he glanced up as a golden streak shot towards him, and he was unsurprised as Avalon joined them, the mare calling to the other Pegasi: “What happened, this place too tough for you guys?” Rainbow Dash opened her mouth to reply, and Antares groaned mentally, knowing he had to cut this off so they could get back on track before the enemy attacked... but then a thunderous boom ripped through the air, and the stallion looked up with surprise as he realized the tainted barrier was now pulsating with white cracks as well as dark, poisoned light. And then there was another bang, and the cracks spread wider over the face of the barrier as all eyes looked up with surprise, before a third and final, thunderous boom tore through the air. The entire barrier rippled violently, the cracks that had spread throughout its surface shining brightly before the energy shield shattered like glass, shards of poisoned magical energy spilling downwards in a hail even as they rapidly burned away, most of them dissolving into nothingness before covering even half the distance to the ground. Antares stared upwards as the light of the moon and the stars lit up the entirety of the fortress so much clearer than the ill light of the barrier had, and the floating island shuddered like a living thing, Aphrodisia stumbling at the tremors, but looking as excited as her mother as she yelled cheerfully up to Antares: “We did it, Nova! Now the real fun starts!” The stallion didn't reply, letting his eyes draw down to the fortress below as he felt the pulse that ran through it, like the floating island itself was alive... and even if they had broken its shell, what he thought he felt most coming from it wasn't fear, or humiliation, or anxiety... it was rage. And if all they had done was make this sentient island or the master that gave it such terrible vitality angry... he wasn't sure he wanted to guess what was waiting for them inside. Top ↑